The first Jewish citizens
The first Jewish citizens of Amersfoort were Sefardim, Spanish and Portuguese Jews. This word comes from Sefarad, the Hebrew word for Spain. Four of these Sefardim are known by name because they received the citizenship of Amersfoort, Emanuel de Tor Alto, Joseph Pereira, Abraham Rodrigues and Isaac a Royo. They were descendents of Spanish and Portuguese Jews who were chased away in the summer of 1492, from the country where they had lived for many centuries, by the so-called Catholic Kings – Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabelle of Castilia, after instigation of Isabelle's confessional father Torquemada.
These people were so intensively interwoven with this land that it is even believed, although not by everyone, that the word ‘Iberia' originates in the word ‘Hebrews'.

The only chance the Jews had to live with the Spanish and Portuguese was the choice to be baptized, although the church followed these people, baptized by force, with suspicions and inquisition. They were called Marranos, new-Christians or in the negative sense ‘pigs'.

Part of the Spanish refugees came in touch with William of Orange, whose aunt, Mencia de Mendoza, the wife of count Hendrik of Nassau, was of Marranos origin as well and whose inheritor he became. One still hears the Marranos trumpets in the song “Merck toch hoe sterck”. William of Orange gave these outcasts as much as he could freedoms of worship, and they financed his war against Spain.
His daughter Emilia married even a Marranos nobleman. The connection between the House of Orange and the Jews has always been tight. In the end, the Sefardim arrived in Amsterdam and travelling via Maarssen, they settled in Amersfoort.

The township here accepted these people- who were certainly not without means- with open arms, knowing how much these Sefardim, with their trade-connections, could mean for the development of the town. But freedom of religion is something entirely different from naturalization. How afraid the craft-guilds were of these strangers! They kept their trade hermetically closed. These Jews were allowed to trade in honey, which they did, although this could hardly provide a decent living.
Because of the Sefardim being traders in woolen materials, they were allowed to deal with that as well. Three or four big looms were set up in houses in the ‘Bloemendalse street', providing employment for 30 to 40 people , Jews who had come with the great traders, as well as Christians who lived here.

Vondel sings about this in his poem:
‘The nightingale of Amisfort'

The spool of the cloth rustles through the tightened chain.
It combs and spins and knits and weaves the fleece.
Here the Stranger is welcomed by the hospitable residents.
Bad and good and without foolish splendor.

But it was not so beautiful as he imagines it to be, as these employers were cursed with terms like ‘pork and dog', and let well , it was the boys of the Latin school, not exactly the lowest part of society, who molested the Jewish children. But things changed for the better, because after the complaints the Sefardim put up to the Magistrate, he took firm action against the cursing and the throwing of stones and the parents were fined for the behavior of their children.

Somewhere in one of the warehouses the Sefardim came together in order to pray and when the first person came to die in about 1670, they bought a plot at the ‘Bloemendalse Buitenpoort', to bury the body. The first world-war and the mobilization before the second one, caused a disturbance in their rest for a short while, but invisible for us, they still rest in the Amersfoort area.

A Jewish cemetery may not be cleared, unless there is an urgent need for it, like for example the enlargement of a town. But even then the bodies and the gravestones are buried again in another Jewish cemetery.

The first Ashkenazi Jews
With the arrival of Ruben and Mozes Gomperts, bankers from Emmerich and Kleve the first Ashkenazi's also settled in Amersfoort. Ashkenazi's are also called High-German Jews. They entered the Netherlands across its eastern border. The word Ashkenazi comes from Ashkenaz, the Hebrew word for Germany, but the East-European Jews are also included in this definition.

This Gomperts-family was not without means either. They came with money, goods and good trade-connections, of which Amersfoort could profit. And well, money was the terrain of the devil, and that was more or less the spot where the Christian in general placed the Jew. In 1676 they received the pawnshop on lease. Being its keeper was certainly not an easy job. Once the cashier was threatened; his wife and children cursed at. But again the Magistrate acted on their behalf; altogether there were only a few incidents.

Some day the two Gomperts' brothers or cousins, this is not clear from the data base, handed the bank over, with consent of the township, to their uncle Lehman.

Even at the time that his son, Mordechai or Marcuslived in the town, we can see that the integration of the Jews is not as perfect as yet.
Although he studied to be Bachelor of the profession of Notary, he did not advance very much. With the offer of the Magistrate to keep the pawnshop, he was not happy either and with his consent, he gave the pawnshop to his brother Kosman, who at that moment lived in Prague. The latter was willing to come to the Netherlands, but his wife Judith did not like the idea at all. She insisted that the moment she stepped out of the coach she could go immediately to a notary, to assure that, if she did not like it in Amersfoort, she could return to Prague. Kosman paid a good amount of bail for it, but he did not hear anything from Judith about going back, certainly not after their daughter married the Jewish boy from Nijkerk, Jacob Marcus.
The Ashkenazi's did not like the prayer-service as it was held by the Sefardim thus the Gomperts' gave a room in the pawnshop as a place to hold prayers. The pawnshop was in the ‘Kromme street, corner Haversteeg'. (steeg = alley).
Sefardim and Ashkenazi's neither wanted to be buried next to each other when they were dead, and so the Ashkenazi community bought a plot in 1699, opposite the Sefardic cemetery, as eternal property. Now it belongs to one of the most romantic spots in the park-strip of ‘Zocher'. Although it is a quiet place, it is not the intention that the present homeless of Amersfoort will continue to put up their tents there, as was lately discovered.

The building of the present synagogue
The place where prayers were held in the pawnshop, which was closed on Shabbat and holidays, became too small and the community-leaders at the head of the growing community, bought a piece of land with housing from the ladies Amarantia and Sophia Drakenborgh in 1726. Within a year arose a square building with small windows of which the centre-line was south-east, in the direction of Jerusalem. And here as well, Amersfoort differed from the other communities who gave their permission for the building of synagogues. Everywhere they should be built inconspicuously among the houses, preferably with the front-door at the side, so no Christian would be tempted to enter. For 275 years the synagogue at the ‘Drieringensteeg' is one of the showpieces of the town of Amersfoort.
No picture of the original square synagogue has been found yet, but we know that there were chandeliers on a podium from which the Torah was read. Once there was a quarrel between Jonas Cohen, the great tobacco-planter and another synagogue-visitor, .The former caught hold of the chandeliers, but it is not clear if he wanted to use them for hitting. Sometimes the feelings were running high with an Oriental ferocity.
The synagogue at the ‘Drieringensteeg' was inaugurated on the eighth of February 1727 in presence of many dignitaries. More than 100 years later, in 1842/43 it received the shape which we know now. Town-architect Ruitenberg got the order to enlarge the building. The straight eastern wall at the side of the ‘Muurhuizen' was transformed into a round shape, which led to the result that the Holy Ark of 1727 had to be replaced. Although in many writings it is stated that this Ark, in which the Torah-scrolls were kept, is from 1727, it thus is from a building-year before that.
The square windows were replaced by neo-Gothic tapering windows with cast-iron frames and only in 1927 the glass-maker from Haarlem, Willem Bogtman would apply Jewish symbols in art-deco style. The great restoration then falls together with the 200 year anniversary, which was celebrated in a grand manner.
The question whether the enlargement of 1842/43 could provide enough space to contain all the Jews of Amersfoort, especially on special days remained, Even now
with so many less Jewish inhabitants, the synagogue is at a wedding almost too small to house all the people. I believe I found the answer of this problem in articles in the ‘Amersfoortse Courant' and in the general Jewish press of 1867. Both articles describe a new synagogue at the opposite side of the ‘Kortegracht/ Muurhuizen', where now the Cliniclowns are housed. It was a rebuilding done internally, possibly by the workshop of the firm Visser, a Jewish middle class family, who has contributed a lot to the boom of the Jewish community. Historians say that this place of prayer has been in use as such for 10 years next to the old one. With the 150 years anniversary of the synagogue at the Drieringensteeg, which was grandly celebrated, nothing is heard anymore about the new praying-house. So we stay with the riddle of shortness of space. It could be, that poor people who wore caps and wooden shoes, were not allowed to enter.

The tobacco-planters Italiaander and Cohen
It is the Cohen family who will come up for discourse on a walk through the town. Ezechiel Cohen got civil rights in 1690, together with his wife and children. Although the former mayor Brouwer was proud of having placed Amersfoort on the international map, he was not the first one doing so. Ezechiel Cohen, the tobacco-planter who moved from Amsterdam to the ‘Muurhuizen', had done so before. He had many kids, who practically all stayed alive, something extra-ordinary at that time. The daughters he matched to the large trade-houses of Europe, an act that guaranteed them a good and secure future. His sent his sons to Arnhem, to Nijmegen, to Nijkerk and to Amsterdam and he also kept a few in Amersfoort. Not only that the tobacco-trade stayed in their hands that way, but the Cohens contributed to the development and the welfare of the Jewish communities in all those places. In the end Ezechiel returned to Amsterdam. His son Jonas would be the only one of the big Cohens, who is buried here, close to his brother in law, Abraham Italiaander, who was a great tobacco-trader as well. Both families are by inter-marriages closely related one to another.

Abraham Italiaander, assisted by his father bought on May 15 1726 the premises ‘Breestraat 76', to store tobacco. Less than 20 years later he sold the premises to his brother in law, Jonas Cohen. Since then it functions as a ware-house. Jonas himself lived in a rented house at the corner of the ‘Kamperbinnenpoort' and the ‘Muurhuizen', now ‘Kamperbinnenpoort no 2' at the rent of ƒ108 a year.
After the death of Jonas, Breestraat 76 came into the hands of his son Benjamin. When Benjamin died in 1800 in Amsterdam, the premises went over into other hands again, as his son Abraham, grandson of Jonas Daniel Meijer and his son –in- law Levy Oppenheim sold them to the trader in grains Otto de Vries, who was neither family nor Jewish. But in 1904 the warehouse came into Jewish hands again; first the premises were bought by Abraham Herschel and in less than a month the Jewish salesman Jonas van Vollenhoven became the owner. Then we do not find Jewish buyers anymore and in the end the premises became a part of Museum Flehite.

But also in the ‘St. Aegten-chapel’ tobacco of the Italiaanders was stored namely of the first Italiaanders who came from Amsterdam to Amersfoort, Isaac and Benjamin. They had rented it in 1724 for the sum of 60 guilders and at the other side of this medieval chapel at ‘t Zand 44', then nr. 10, the warehouse 'de Tabaksplant' in use by Abraham Italiaander was situated.

In Amerfoort more premises had the name 'Tabaksplant'
We go back to the Cohen family. Jonas had ordered to construct the so-called country-house ‘de Vinkenhoef' in Hoogland, where Cohen marriages were held and famous Cohen children were born. At the ‘Vinkenhoef' (vink = finch) finches were caught, maybe because Jews are allowed to eat finches, but not when they are shot. Both Jonas, as well as his son Benjamin used to entertain many guests.
Son Benjamin was born in 1725. He became the most famous of all the Cohens. A lot of what he owned can be found in Amersfoort and then particularly the ‘House with the purple windows' at the ‘Zuidsingel' But also the two characteristic little houses in front of the synagogue at the ‘Kortegracht', which he donated to the Jewish community in 1780. One of them became a study-house and would remain so till our time. Much later the physician Isaac Weijl gave lessons in Jewish learning every evening. Except for being a physician, he was also the first Jew in the Netherlands who became a member of the town-council in Amersfoort. He helped the Jewish community as well with the risks of the emancipation.

Another important family, the
Herschels
The great figures of the first days,
the Italiaander and Cohen families have disappeared from
the street-scene, but another, a bit less richer but
prominent family has stayed and lived in Amersfoort
until after the second World-war, namely the Herschel
family.
As the old cemetery at the ‘Bloemendalse Poort' has not
been cleared and the gravestones are in most cases well
legible, we can find the stone from 1809, bearing the
name of Abraham Herschel. He was called Messerits as
well, after the place he came from. He remained known as
the administrator of Benjamin Cohen, whose affairs he
handled, especially in connection with stadholder
William V and his energetic wife Wilhelmina of Prussia.
Besides that, he was a teacher and rabbi of the
community and tobacco trader as well.
His son Eleazar was wholesale dealer in tobacco, and he
took care of the sale of the house ‘Rommelenburg', which
was owned by the son of Benjamin Cohen, Ezechiel. This
house must have been just as impressive as the now still
existing premises at the ‘Zuidsingel' and ‘Westsingel'.
It stood at the beginning of the ‘Kortegracht', opposite
‘Tinnenburg', where in the past the Italiaander family
lived.

Eleazar Herschel married the daughter
of Jacob Abraham van Gelder who is involved in the
social care of the Jewish community. In the Netherlands,
totally dominated by sectarianism, each religion had to
take care of its own poor and Jacob van Gelder left a
sum of ƒ80.000 after his death in 1877 as a starting
capital for the building of a Jewish home for the
elderly. He even had already given it a name: Mischenis
Zikeinim de Jangcoph (the right name is probably
“Mishkenot Zekenim de Jacob”) - living quarters of Jacob
for the elderly- as he had the view that many would
follow him with gifts. His believe was so b, that
he even had planned a home for orphans with the money
that was left, Newei Jangcoph legadlei Jethomim (home of
Jacob for the education of orphans)
The Herschels remained closely attached to the Jacob
Abraham van Gelder foundation, which still exists and
which purpose is to render financial support-, if
necessary- for social welfare .
One of these generous donors that Jacob had put his eyes
on, could have been Meijer Salomon Abrahamson, who
financed in 1873, a large part of the cemetery at the
‘Soesterweg', because the Bloemendalse Poort was full.
But unfortunately for the community, because of a
conflict, he gave ƒ80.000 to the poor of Palestine, as
the Holy Land was called at that time.

Unexpectedly the author of this
article herself received a letter from a great-great
grandson of a certain Elisabeth Aronson, who was married
to a hatter from London. Apparently this business had
provided so much money, that Elisabeth in her legacy had
stipulated, that the grave-stones of her family at the
‘Bloemendalse Poort' should be put in order and she also
very generously remembered the poor widows of
Amersfoort.

Social care
Jewry carries social care high in its
banners. In Amersfoort the Jewish community started with
a “”box-physician” who got paid from this box. In the
minutes-book which was lost in the Second World War, one
could read in the Yiddish language: ‘dat geresolfiert
geworren ist, das rebbe Youel roufe soll sein roufe for
die selbige, die fon Kahl pretendieren Ihne zu
bedienen', or freely translated: it has been decided
that rebbe Jouel, physician, will act as such for those
who on account of the community-funds want medical help.
Of course Dr. Youel did not have to give his services
free. We learn from the above-mentioned minutes that for
this medical help, which included medicine, he was paid
out of the income of the community. This consisted of
money collected for matses, slaughter , house rent,
distribution of candles and loulof, dues imposed upon
the Jewish community for these kinds of services. Matses
are given in the Pesach-holiday, which is in spring and
with the loulaf, the bunch of plants, thanks are given
to G'd after the bringing of the last harvest in the
autumn.

A peculiar way of care for the poor
was the system of ‘flattening banknotes'. One could give
to the tsedaka- charity- by buying these bank-notes from
the parnassim, the community-leaders. They were a kind
of gift-coupons, which were given to the poor who passed
through and who could buy food and/or achieve
accommodation with them.

Homes for passers-by and beggars
We go back in time again. On March 10,
1738 the Magistrate decides that no accommodation may be
given to strange ‘smouses', unless behind the wall.
On June 19, 1741 it was forbidden by the governors of
Amersfoort to give shelter to poor Jewish travelers and
passers-by, under offense of a fine of ƒ25.
But Gerrit Samuelse did get permission to have passers-
by sleep over night. Sibilla Hartog, a widow who lived
in the ‘Utrechtse Poort', wanted to increase her income
as well, but was not considered eligible. Salomon Gerson
Cohen did get permission, however, because his father,
who had just passed away, had already given lodgings. He
was allowed to spread beds for traveling Jews thus
giving them lodging for a while.
Because of all these rules, it was a relief for the
Jewish community, when it was allowed to arrange special
houses for ‘passers-by and beggars' in the ‘Valkestraat'
and the ‘Drieringensteeg'.
While travelling through on his way from Frankfurt on
Main in February 1761, a certain Abraham, treasurer of
this German-Jewish community, died, and he was buried in
the cemetery ‘Bloemendalse Poort'. Apparently he was an
important man, as he even got a grave-stone there.
Less generosity was bestowed upon another passing rabbi,
who in September 1735 was accompanied to his hotel by a
crowd of Jews. This El'azar Brody was only passing
through on his way from Poland to Amsterdam. Outwardly
it seemed that the town-council gave him much honor by
placing two guards in front of the hotel, but by
checking more thoroughly in the archive, it appears that
something else was going on.
The governors of Amersfoort wrote two letters, in which
they requested the newspapers of Amsterdam and Haarlem
to publish a rectification. These papers wrote on the
17th of September that the town -council had ordered two
guards to be placed in front of the hotel of the rabbi
of Broda, and that he, while leaving the town, was
accompanied by an escort. Because of the angry reaction
of the Magistrate after these news-messages, one could
consider the guards, as well as the escort, as a sign of
suspicion. The Magistrate rejects the charges by saying
that the commanding officer had done this on his own
initiative.

Suspicion, but now with a good reason,
arises when Franciscus Marcus asks for a permit to come
and live here again. It appears that he was born in
Amersfoort. After a two-years stay in Zwolle he is
exiled, and he returns to his place of birth,
Amersfoort. Of course the town-council wants to know the
reason for his exile.
From a letter which the magistrate of Zwolle writes, it
is evident that this Franciscus, together with three
other Jews, cheated a farmer from Campen, for which he
has served two years in prison in Zwolle. The
town-council of Amersfoort does not put all the blame on
him, as he did not perform this crime alone, but he has
to leave the town within a short time.
What a certain Mozes Hertog and his mother have done
wrong on June 20, 1735, must be so bad, that they had to
leave their home in the Valkestraat and the town
immediately within 24 hours.

All this does not have anything to do
with hate for Jews as we see in the permission of
dancing at weddings. As long as this takes place in some
tavern on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and not in the
near surroundings of a church or the town-house, the
Magistrate permits it. Whether everybody could allow
himself the renting of a tavern and musicians is another
question. Actually the many notes of insolvency at
registrations for weddings are the answer to this.

Notes of insolvency
To give an idea of the substantial
situation of the Jews in 1860, I found that most of the
446 Jews were mainly small and very small salesmen. It
remains a riddle how the many butchers, hatters and
tailors could make a living. In 1901, 66 of the 370 Jews
were dependent on support.
During the cholera- epidemic of 1866 the following
supplies were given to the non-wealthy fellow-believers:
1038 half Dutch-pounds meat, (a Dutch pound is about 510
gr.) 684 ditto rice, 2500 (or 250? -editor) ditto bread,
3 bales of seaweed, 52 shirts, 29 pillows, 22
mattresses, 23 blankets, 10 sheets, different clothes,
even chalk, etc. etc. and the costs of this reached a
total of ƒ 600.

It is striking that witnesses at
marriages are mostly Jews and often family-members of
the couple, but at births we see many non-Jewish
witnesses, often colleague- salesmen, who earn a small
sum by doing so, as most of the people were poor.
Death in the years 1812-1873 is registered by vergers of
the Jewish community, father and son Levites, who also
circumcise eight-day old boys. They are very capable
mohalim, circumcisers, as I never met a mentioning of a
boy who died after his brith mila, his circumcision. The
death-toll of children was high, like the victims of
epidemics.

But wealthy or poor; the Jews of
Amersfoort are put to eternal rest side by side in the
same death-clothes and the same simple wooden coffins at
the ‘Bloemendalse Poort' and after 1873 behind the
characteristic small house at the ‘Soesterweg' which now
from spring till fall shows a large flower wealth. There
is already a 4th generation of Hemmers-women graveyard
keepers watching over it, of whom the second one,
Gerritje, even celebrated her 65th anniversary. At her
60th anniversary she received a silver medal of honor,
connected to the ‘Order of Orange Nassau', but of much
greater value were the words of the then time minister,
who called her a living archive, to whom no computer
could match. And at that time the computers were still
as big as a room and would never have fit in her small
house.
The cemetery at the ‘Soesterweg' is probably one of the
first projects designed, by the in 1871 appointed
town-architect, W.H.Kan

The Schaap-family produces the first chief-rabbi of Amersfoort (schaap = sheep)
On many grave-stones in the cemetery
in the Bloemendalse Poort as well as in the Soesterweg
the family name Schaap has been chiseled, although the
members of this family often lived elsewhere. Most of
the Schaapfamilies (Sheep) of Amersfoort lived in the
‘Langestraat'.
Ancestor-mother Dina Isaacs married Levy Mozes Schaap,
who died in 1803.

Dina's third child was called Clara
who married Hartog Abrahams, a salesman, who later took
on the name Herschel, which was so well-known in town.
Dina's four sons were all doing well, they handled in
drapery. They stayed with their family around Mother's
‘kugel', a kind of Jewish bakery. From the population of
Amersfoort they all got a nick-name, to distinguish
between them: Joseph was called ‘Sheep under the lamb'
as above the window of his shop, ‘Langestraat 89' was
the picture of a lamb. His daughter Dina was called
‘Dina under the lamb' to distinguish her from her
cousins with the same name. To reach son Benjamin the
customers had to climb a few stairs to enter his shop at
Langestraat 42 and that's why he was called ‘Sheep in
the steps'. Son Hijman lived in the Langestraat 36 under
the sign ‘Sheep in the shepherd'. The eldest son, Mozes
was the regular ‘Sheep'. What did Benjamin, the son of
Mozes Schaap, thus the regular sheep of Amersfoort, do
for a living? To begin with he bought a house in the
‘Langestraat' for ƒ 1750 and he was the first collector
for the ‘chartered society of lottery in Utrecht'. Later
he became the collector for the State-lottery, together
with his son Raphael. Besides the lottery, they had a
stockbroker business as well. The firm lost a lot of
money, when during the Spanish war of 1834-1840, the
Spanish stocks went down. The family had to sell all its
gold and silver to pay the creditors.

After this bad experience, his son
Raphael started a wine business with his brother Levi,
who was called Leib. In more than hundred years a lot
had changed for the Jews. In 1724 it was thoroughly
declared in a document, that Jews could not be members
in the craft-guild of the wine-traders. And now it was
clearly written on the wax-stamp with which the bottles
were closed: “Schaap and brothers, salesmen in kosher
wine”. But the wine-business knew difficulties as well.
Besides that, Levi did not enjoy the wine-business; he
preferred to become a rabbi. Luckily this wish was
honored. He studied at the Dutch Jewish Seminar in
Amsterdam, which still exists, and he continued his
studies abroad.
After some wandering about, he was installed by
Chief-rabbi Aron Mendez Chumaceiro on the 5th of May
1848, as chief-rabbi in the jurisdiction of Amersfoort,
which meant that he was also responsible for Utrecht,
Maarssen, Uithoorn, Vreeland, Wijk bij Duurstede, Rhenen
en Veenendaal. The Jewish community of Utrecht was much
smaller than that of Amersfoort, also because Jews were
allowed there only much later.

Hester Schaap, the
oldest daughter of arch-father Levi Mozes, belonged with
her husband, Hartog Jacobs to the first Jews who were
allowed to settle in Utrecht. That must have been before
1779.

Chief-rabbi Levi Benjamin Schaap was
tolerant, and he succeeded in connecting Jewish religion
to general culture. He belonged to the first ones who
held their sermons in Dutch. He had many friends among
the orthodox as well as the liberal community members. A
year after his commission as chief-rabbi he married the
nine years younger Sophia Norden. In the year 1859, when
his wife was pregnant with their eighth child, this
loved rabbi passed away of scarlet fever. He has been
immortalized by the painter Josef Israels.

14 years after his death, the earlier
mentioned chief-rabbi Aron Mendez Chumaceiro settled
here with his second wife Sara Vaz Dias. The reason is
not clear. It may be that he was installed in the
synagogue at the ‘Kortegracht', which existed between
1867 and 1877, as he stayed here from 1871 until 1875.
Even a son was born to him here.

Chief-rabbi Jonas Daniel Wijnkoop (1842-1910)
For more than hundred years, from 1813
till June 24, 1917 there was a chief synagogue in
Amersfoort after which Utrecht took over this function.
Having the chief-synagogue, Amersfoort had the right and
the honor to house a chief rabbi, these
functionaries came and went one after the other .
Therefore they started quickly to look for a new
functionary, who was only found in 1902 in the person of
the linguistic and bible-explainer Jonas Daniel (Joseph
David) Wijnkoop. In addition to his chief-rabbinate he
was also private teacher at the University of Amsterdam
and author of different studies in several languages.
But the Jewish leaders in Amsterdam were not happy with
his combined function of being chief rabbi of Amersfoort
and his being a teacher at the Dutch Jewish Seminar, and
they forced him to choose. His choice became negative
for Amersfoort. Altogether he had been there for only a
year and a half and the difficult task of chief leader
was again put on the shoulders of the aged Reb (rabbi)
Chajim Hurwitz, who had been from his 20th year the
support and trust of the community.

J.D.Wijnkoop was the father of David Wijnkoop who was for years a member
of the Amsterdam City council and who (he) sat for the
CPN in parliament.

Reb Chajim Hurwitz
Reb Chajim Hurwitz was a particularly
colorful character, although he was always dressed in
black. He came from Bellinowitz, in Russian Poland, and
he had come to Amersfoort at a very young age. He led
the community for more than 60 years. He had a son,
Jacob, who at the age of 24 wanted to marry Sara Bakker.
Reb Chajim bly disagreed and did not give his
approval. Although the community respected him, they
stood as a wall around the young man. In the Townhall we
see the delegation show up: Raphael Schaap, delegate of
the first class States-lottery; Mozes de Zoete, hatter;
Gerrit van Gelder, tobacco-salesman and even chanter
Soesman van Itallie.
The couple Hurwitz had four children who all stayed
alive.

For those children and the children de
Vries and the children of baker Snatager and those of
the tailors Lombard and van Duuren, of the butchers van
der Sluis, van Gelder and van Beek from Nijkerk there
were two schools in 1836: one for paying children and
one for non-paying children. General and religious
education was taught in both schools. And if we think
that only present newspapers publish letters, nothing is
less true. In 1866 appears a published letter in the
national Jewish press, about the miserable condition of
Jewish education in Amersfoort. ”The children know
nothing; learn nothing, not even a trade. At their
parents' home they live from begging and when they go
and start their own family, this begging has become a
habit, and they walk with the beggar's bag”. And whose
fault is that – of the teacher and the council for the
poor, who keep supporting them financially.
For weeks on end a discussion is going on, about the
qualities of the teacher Abraham Jacob Klasser.
Satisfied former-pupils interfere. A good teacher, who
gets bad pay and has to put up a trade in trinkets to
keep going, cannot dedicate himself to education!
But he did a lot better than Awrohom Hagenau who in the
18th century taught children Torah and Jewish morality.
He got for his slavery only ƒ 8 a month. Apparently they
wanted to keep him, as his salary was raised a few years
later with 100%. There were quite a few school-keepers
here in the beginning, but the surname de Vries has
remained alive as such in Amersfoort's Jewish history,
in this connotation.
In 1913 Jacob van Dam was appointed here as minister and
teacher. He has served the community faithfully till his
deportation in 1943. While decorating her house at the
Schimmelpennickstreet a few years ago Rita Hunink found
a love-letter of him. She contacted his daughter, who
had, in contrast to her parents, survived the war, and
had ended up with her family in America. She came
personally to accept the letter, and she was a guest of
honor at the presentation of the book about the
Schimmelpenninck-area.
As much as the Jews were integrated, they could not be
members of the ‘Society for Benefit of All', as this
society rested on Christian bases. That's why in 1849 a
separate Society for benefit of Jews was founded. On
December 26, 1869 a department was put up in Amersfoort
as well.

Of a different meaning, but still a
sign of complete Dutch citizenship, is the appointment
to ‘Purveyor to the Royal Household' of the Jewish
butcher from Baarn, Meijer Meijers by His Royal Highness
Prince Hendrik, the Sailor. The Jewish community was
very proud and a lot was written about it in the Jewish
press. That was in 1866. Five years later this honor was
bestowed on the book- and art-salesman in Amersfoort,
Philip Meijers.

Because Abraham Herschel was a member
of the freemason-loge ‘Jacob van Campen', we know that
Jews were welcome there, and so they were at the society
‘Amicitia', where the same Herschel was the secretary.
This Abraham Herschel, who lived from 1824 till 1929,
was besides being a member of the town-council, also
member of the governors of Public Housing and
president-commissioner of the then existing
streetcar-association of Amersfoort. Particular is, that
he was knight of the civilian order of Jesus Christ of
Portugal. This decoration he got for his services in
connection with the tobacco-regime. In the years of
World War I (1914-1918) he was a member of the
State-distribution-committee for tobacco as well.
When you leave Amersfoort through the ‘Ring and
Hogeweg', direction Hoevelaken, you pass just behind the
viaduct at the right side a gentleman-farm with the name
‘Maxhoeve'. This was once property of Abraham Herschel
and it was designed at the turn of the century by H.
Kroes. He also designed in 1904 the warehouse ‘Grote
Koppel' for the Jewish firm J. van Vollenhoven,
department Colonial Wares. The goods were delivered by
ship via the then so called ‘Zuiderzee’ and the river
Eem.

Society-life
The ‘chewre-room' takes a central place in a Jewish community. ‘Chewre's' are brotherhoods and sisterhoods, of which several of them act within a Jewish community.
In years past, the community looked much livelier, with
next to the Talmud Torah, the study of the Torah, the
chevre Bikur Cholim for visiting sick people, which is
presently done individually, Tif’èret Nashim, in which
women were busy with social work, tsedaka-charity,
taking care of poor community-members, chewre Klei
Kodesh, the society for women, founded in 1911, which
were occupied with the maintenance and reparation of
holy Synagogue-items, like reparation of Torah-coats.
A chewre which still exists is the chewre kedishe, which
is engaged in taking terminal care, looking after the
dead and preparing the funeral.

But also to relaxation attention was
paid.
In 1913 ‘Chizuk Emuna was founded for teaching young
people; courses, recitals and lectures were held, ‘to
evoke and develop Jewish science, Jewish thought and
life in the young hearts of youthful Israel in
Amersfoort, as the advertising prospectus announces.
Minister M. Zadoks and teacher J. van Dam take on
themselves the management and in 1923 the ten years
existence is celebrated.
In 1917 the theatre-company ‘New Life' is founded as
well as the ‘Society Jewish Military Home' and in 1927
the society ‘Benefit and Pleasure', in Hebrew Toungeles
wesimcho'. The whole Jewish community was members and
Phili Rintel, probably still remembered by older people
from Amersfoort was the chairman till 1941. After the
war it was Phili Rintel who put in all his energy for
the rebuilding of the Jewish community in Amersfoort, in
which he succeeded splendidly.
The celebrations and theatre-plays were usually held in
‘de Valk' and lectures in the building ‘Concordia' in
the Langestraat.
Because the government did not want to appoint an
army-rabbi, ‘Benefit and Pleasure' took on themselves in
1939 the organization of supplying kosher food and
finding a guest-family for the many Jewish soldiers, who
were serving in and around Amersfoort so they would be
able on Shabbat to relax in the atmosphere of a rest-day
and to participate at the service in the synagogue. The
Jewish military home stood at ‘de Kamp' and it was Arie
van Tijn who made a big effort here for. The name of his
son Maurits is immortalized in the ‘M. van Tijnpad' in
the Rustenburg-area, as memory to his brave conduct
which he showed during the resistance. Unfortunately he
was killed in 1944 in Poland.
Later on, Jewish soldiers, who wanted to eat kosher,
could do this for a long time in the Sinai Centre in the
‘Laan 1914'. Now they get probably a deepfreeze meal
from that centre.

Special people
Out of many newspaper-reports it is
striking that many Jews have contributed a lot to the
Jewish community and to general social life as well.
Next to the active Herschels we find for example the
surgeon and obstetrician Levi Efraim Visser, who had
studied medicine in Utrecht and who celebrated on May
18, 1875 the 50 years existence of his practice. (He had
studied medicine in Utrecht.) As he was more or less a
pensioner physician in 1875, he took apparently in that
same anniversary-year the chairmanship of the Jewish
community, although soon he returned the chairmanship,
but he stayed as a member of the synagogue-council and
until his death, he worked for the charity-organization
‘chewre kedishe gemilut chasidim'.
He was the son of Kaatje Herschel, who had been widowed
at an early age and in addition to being a saleswoman,
she had to bring up eight kids as well. She was a
'feministe à la lettre', although she in all
probabilities did not see it like that herself.
Levi Efraim Visser fulfilled many functions in his
social life. He is mentioned as president of the civil
society ‘Philharmonia'. The members of this society came
together in ‘het Valkje', a very old tavern at the
Valkestraat no 14, which is mentioned already in 1568.
There was another society, ‘Unitas', under the
leadership of J.Sinnige and its members came together in
café Muller (much later named Schwemmer). J. Sinnige
succeeded to convince surgeon Visser in 1882 to combine
their societies into the new society ‘ Vereniging'
(union, club) with now altogether 38 members. The place
where they came together was miserable and in 1897, they
bought the building which slowly was enlarged in such a
way, that it stretched out from the ‘Valkestreet' to the
‘Stovestreet' and together with the enlargement its
membership blossomed as well.
So it was no surprise that the mayor, the alderman and
the secretary of the civil community-council
participated in his funeral at the cemetery at the
Bloemendalse Poort.

In legal matters we find solicitor Mr.
Jacobus Bernardus Heijmans, born about 1781 in Nijmegen
and conferred to a degree of doctor in 1811 in Leiden,
after which he settled in Amersfoort as a lawyer.
According to a document of 1813 he was appointed
attorney by the empress-governess of France ,being
apparently the oldest attorney and judge-deputy in the
empire, the former mentioned function he maintained 55
years and the latter one 30 years. We read about him
that he was an ex-captain at the functioning home-guard,
ex-plaintiff at the council of the home-guard, curator
of the Latin schools and a writing member of the
head-council of Jewish affairs. He was president of the
commission of Jewish public-schools commission, together
with L.E. Visser, treasurer; R. Schaap, secretary; J.E.
Herschel,
member, the other great figures of the Jewish community.
When he died at the age of 87, he still was chairman of
the Jewish community.
His mother was Abigail Cohen, from the important
Cohen-family in Amersfoort.

In his young years his cousin, Godert
Cohen was sent from Nijmegen to Amersfoort, to learn the
book-trade at S.van Gelder and during his
apprenticeship, he lived for four years in the house of
Heijmans. Between these two cousins grew a longstanding
friendship which remained all their lives.
Although the Cohens furthered the sale in tobacco
everywhere and did well themselves, in Nijmegen it did
not live up to their expectations. In the end the Cohens
of Nijmegen chose for the book-business, which resulted
in the end in the well-known publishing-house ‘Brothers
E. & M. Cohen'. Unfortunately the war of 1940-45 also
finished this publishing-house and the firm was taken
over by ‘Unieboek Bussum'.

Jacob Schulman and the
treasure of Amersfoort
In 1894, with the rebuilding of the
house of Anna van der Heijden in the Nieuwstraat a
special discovery was made, which consisted of one big
and two small jars with gold- and silver coins. The big
jar contained 12.800 kilograms gold coins; the two small
ones had together 9.900 kilograms of silver coins; the
gold coins were all undamaged, the silver ones were
mostly oxidized. They called the specialist Jacob
Schulman. He immediately saw that there were a few very
exceptional pieces. The oldest coin was from 1504 and
the youngest from 1558. So the treasure must have been
hidden for about 330 years. On the 26th of February the
coins were temporarily moved to the Royal Cabinet of
coins, medals and engraved stones in The Hague, where
they were described and on July 18, 1894, they were sold
in Amsterdam.
Jacob Schulman came originally from Hilversum and his
hobby was assembling coins from the then Dutch-Indies,
and medals. From his hobby he made a profession. His big
specialties were Eastern coins and coins from
Portugal/Brazil and the rest of South-America. In 1880
he published his first catalogue of Dutch coins. His
numismatics workshop was in the Langestraat (now no.
28), corner Lieve Vrouwenstraat. In 1889 he held his
first coin-auction in his own name. Five years later he
sold a big part of the Amersfoort coin-treasure. Because
of all these activities, the place in Amersfoort became
too small, and it was moved to Amsterdam in 1902, where
his sons came into the business, they became notorious
far beyond the Dutch borders.
An interesting detail to report is that in addition to
his work Jacob Schulma was the secretary (from
1882-1883) of the archaeological society Flehite from
1882-1883.

The 200 years anniversary
The 200 years anniversary of the
synagogue was celebrated in a spectacular way. The
building was restored again, now under supervision of
the architect from Amsterdam, Harry Elte. Biblical
representations were made in stained-glass windows by
the artist Willem Bogtman from Haarlem. These were
seriously damaged during the Second World War and in
1949 they were restored by the artist from Amersfoort,
Luigjes.
The restoration of the so mentioned golden ‘parochet',
the curtain in front of the Holy Ark, was made possible
in honor of the 200 years anniversary, by a gift of
Queen Wilhelmina. Her namesake, Wilhelmina of Prussia,
gave the synagogue in 1787 a piece of gold-brocade, to
be used for a curtain. This gesture was made out of
gratitude for help and protection which especially
Benjamin Cohen from Amersfoort had given her and her
husband. Prince William V himself offered a sum of
money, of which a big chandelier for Chanuka was made,
on which his name was engraved. I do not know when it
disappeared, but I think that here as well we can blame
the Second World War. The ‘parochet' was too delicate
and too dear to stay any longer in the synagogue, and it
got a steady place in the Museum Flehite, together with
the portrait of the prince, who gave it to Benjamin
Cohen. For years it hung in the Town-hall, after a
descendant of Benjamin gave it to the community of
Amersfoort.
At the celebration in 1927 the mayor, Duke of Randwijck
was guest of honor, and he said how much he and his
predecessors appreciated the Jewish citizens because of
their devotion to the town.

The ceremony started by bringing into
the celebrating synagogue 14 Torah-scrolls from the
building at the opposite side, which was put down in
1865 to serve as Jewish school. At that time it must
have been a very modern building, but when I in 1949 had
my first Jewish lessons there, it made a gloomy
impression. When I read the books of Singer in which he
describes the East-European Jewry, that dark building
from the Drieringensteeg comes up in my thoughts. It now
is a community-building where after the
synagogue-services coffee is drunk and parties connected
to Jewish events are celebrated. The building is adapted
to our own days, and it is pleasant to be there.

Ben Polak composes for the
celebration the Jubilee cantata
I have connected my heart to the shul
(synagogue)
Our shul at the Drieringensteeg
I have always found her beautiful
Without paint, yes and here and there a wipe
The floor broken, the stoves without warmth
The benches hard, but it did not matter
The Jewish cause did not suffer by it
It stands b above all.

I love you, my shul in the alley
With you wonderful glory
I love you, my shul in the alley
Now you show of with your new coat
And I would not want

You to disappear in nothing
My beautiful shul
My shul in the alley
To you I drink a toast.

Appendix
Names of persons who are mentioned in
the lecture with possible family-connections, dates of
birth and death and professions.

Ezechiel Cohen
Born about 1670, Amsterdam. Died 21-4-1744 Arnhem.
Buried Muiderberg (near his son), Married to Marritje Cohen.
One of the founders of the Synagogue Drieringensteeg.
Salesman in tobacco, Rabbi, parnas (head of the Jewish community).
Father of:

Jonas Cohen
Born about 1698, Amersfoort. Died 20-2-1780, Amersfoort.
Buried Bloemendalse Poort. Salesman in tobacco, rabbi, parnas.
Married three times, first wife Sara Benjamin Italiaander.
Their son is:

Benjamin Cohen
Born July/Aug. 1725, Amersfoort. Died 10-1-1800, Amsterdam.
Buried Muiderberg. Grower of tobacco, salesman, managed the pawnshop Amersfoort, banker in opportunities for Frederik of Prussia. Married three times.
First wife cousin, Eva Cohen with her son:

Abraham Cohen
Born 10-10-1751/52.Amersfoort. Died 9-1-1824 Tours.
He married twice with the girl Gompertz.
Oldest son:

Anne Jean Philippe Cohen de Vinkenhoef
Born 17-10-1781, in the summerhouse of the Cohen-family.
Well-known French literary person, who died on 6-4-1848 in Paris.

Eleazar Herschel
Born about 1760, Amersfoort. Died 6-11-1849, Amersfoort.
Wholesaler in tobacco. Married to Mietje van Gelder.
Son:

Benjamin Eleazar Herschel
Born 3-10-1801, Amersfoort. Died 25-1-1894, Amersfoort.
Buried Bloemendalse Poort. Salesman in tobacco, member of the town-council, member of Chamber of Commerce, parnas, President of the governors of the Jacob van Gelder society.

Hartog Abraham Herschel
born about 1745, Mesritz (Poland). Died 6-9-1836, Amersfoort.
Marries Clara Schaap. He adopts the name Herschel.
Daughter:

Kaatje Herschel
Born 18-7-1769, Amersfoort. Died
21-5-1851, Amersfoort.
Married to Efraim Levi Visser.

Abraham Herschel
Born 2-2-1844, Amersfoort. Died
11-7-1929, Amersfoort. Son of
Benjamin Eleazer Herschel and Naatje Schaap.

William of Orange
Born 1533, Dillenburg. Murdered 1584, Delft.
Son of Duke William the Rich of Nassau and Juliana van Stolberg. He is of Lutheran believes. Inherits the title ‘Prince of Orange’ of his Uncle Rene of Chalon.

H.R.H. Prince Hendrik
is William Frederic Hendrik of Orange Nassau, nicknamed “the Sailor”.
Born 13-6-1820 in the Soestdijk-palace.
Died 13-1-1879 in Walferdange, Luxemburg. Son of King William II and Anna Palowna Romanov. Brother of King William III.
Since the death of his mother in 1865, he lived till 1879 in Soestdijk.

Philip Rintel
Born 15-3-1904, Amersfoort. Died 27-11-1983.
Journalist, Member of the board of directors of the Jewish community till his death.

Levi Benjamin Schaap
Born 20-1-1814, Amersfoort. Died 7-6-1859, Amersfoort.
First chief-rabbi in Amersfoort.

Isaac Michael Weijl
Born 21-7-1778, Nijmegen. Died 20-3-1855, Amersfoort.
Physician. First Dutch Jew who became a member of the town-council. Got his degree in 27-11-1798 in Leiden as physician, together with his brother Jacob who settled in Nijkerk.
He functioned as civil servant of the Registration with marriages and he performed Jewish marriages as well. He was parnas and mohel from 1805-1811.

Chewre's or brother- and sisterhoods:Bikur Cholim visiting of the sick.Chewre kedishe terminal care, care of the dead and funeral-preparation.Klei Kodesh maintenance and repair of Synagogue-objects, Talmud Tora study of the Tora (bible).Tiferet Nashim women-chewre for social welfare.Tsedaka care of the poor.Chizuk Emuna promoting Jewish knowledge, founded 1913.Association for the benefit of the Jews promoting Jewish and general knowledge, founded on 26-12-1869.Company of drama "New Life" founded 1917.Jewish military home founded 1917.